Page 100 of Pooh

“I don’t hate you. It’s okay. Pippa was ready to be a mom and she’s hella awesome at it. You gave me to her so that makes you pretty smart. Maybe it’s okay if Pippa is my mom and you’re my friend instead? Pooh says a guy can never have too many friends and that they are important to have. That makes you important to me.”

Tears in her eyes, Katrena gives Craig a brief hug and then one for me with a whispered thank you. She walks out of the office, without looking back, and this chapter in our lives is now closed.

Epilogue

Pooh

A few months later

“Do you know what today is, little man?” I ask Craig while making him Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck pancakes.

“Yep.”

“Do you know what a big deal it is?”

“Yep.”

“Are you nervous about being in a courtroom today?”

“Nope.”

I look over my shoulder to find Craig feeding Bart, whose standing on the counter, one piece of cereal at a time. Boy and skunk are inseparable. Craig has a scooter that he stands on with one foot while pushing with the other and Bart is making it a habit to stand on it behind Craig. Cute as hell watching Gee skateboard while Craig and Bart ride circles around him.

“Okay, I think I’m ready. Are you guys ready? I’m ready. We should get going soon,” Pippa blathers while entering the kitchen.

“Babe, we don’t need to leave for almost two hours yet. Calm down. Take a seat and I’ll bring pancakes over for you and Craig. Drink your coffee and let Craig eat some breakfast. You might also want to recheck what you’re wearing. Showing up in court wearing pajama pants with a blouse might cause a few eyebrows to rise. Calm down. It’s just a formality today.”

“Holy shit, Pips. Today is not a big deal,” Craig adds his opinion.

“It is a big deal! You legally become mine today. That’s huge!” Pippa nearly shrieks.

“Been yours for months now, Pips. Today just means I have to wear those damn ugly clothes. Though yours are worse than mine right now,” Craig ends on a giggle.

“Language, Craig!” Pippa spits as she heads back to the bedroom to change.

“Whatever,” Craig responds while stuffing his mouth full of pancakes.

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“You understand that by signing the papers today that you will bear the weight and responsibility for this young man’s future, correct?”

“Yes, Your Honor, I understand and willingly have chosen to do so,” Pippa answers firmly.

The judge stares at Pippa for a beat or two and then swings his eyes to where Craig is sitting next to where Pippa is standing.

“You look like a smart young man, Craig.”

“I am.”

“Are you happy about this adoption? Do you know what the word adoption means?” the judge asks.

Craig stands up and steps closer to Pippa’s side before answering. The judge gets way more than he ever asked for, but that’s Craig in a nutshell.

“Well, yeah, I know what the word means. Pippa and Pooh explained it to me many times. I only needed to hear it once though. I’m very smart and Chubs tells me that all the time. Chubs is my friend and my teacher. He keeps snacks around so we can power up our brain cells when they get tired of learning. Bella and I learn our school things from Chubs. She’s kind of like my big sister and friend. I don’t get why I have to wear these ugly ass clothes though just to tell you that. Pippa just said I had to and she was so nervous today that I did it so she’d calm the hell down. Women! Am I right? Anyways, I’mlegallygetting Pippa as my mom today, but that’s kind of stupid because she’s been my mom for a long time now.”

When the judge starts to interrupt, Craig holds up a hand to stop him and then he continues, much to everyone’s dismay and the judge’s amusement. Pippa drops her chin to her chest and just accepts the fact that Craig is going to say his piece.

“When my other mom left me, Pippa was there. Tammy was there. Pooh and Trigger were there. Then I got the whole club. They built me a fence and let me help! I went from having a mean ass dad and a sometimes mom to having a huge family of people who listen to me and protect me from bad things, like nightmares and all that. They teach me cool stuff and let me have a skunk as a pet. I mean, really, who else would do that? There’s Loki to protect me. He’s a huge ass dog. And Gee is one of my best friends. He’s a pig that likes to wear clothes and skateboards. He has a shirt that says ‘Breaking Hearts and Blasting Farts’ and that’s just funny shit. And Mac. He’s a talking bird. You know, like those Angry Birds. But he’s funny and he gives Axel hell, so I like him a lot. And Bailey is ready to pop, whatever that means, so I’ll have more family soon. Something to do with babies being inside of women. I don’t really understand all of that, but as long as it’s not inside of me, I don’t care. I mean, I like babies and the twins are cool, but I don’t want one in me, dude.”

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